The Dickensian aspect
I would like to speculate something. I think that at some point in the 2000s John Lanchester stood up and said to himself: ‘Right, I’m sick of all these silly books about middle aged people in Islington having affairs. I, Lanchester, am going to write a Big, Bold Novel that captures the state of the nation in the new century. I am going to write the Great Panoramic London Novel!’ Except that panoramic novels are hard. You need believable, three-dimensional characters, and they need to interact in realistic and believable ways. You need to explore your characters’ stories, and the ways in which their stories connect. The book itself must have a soul – the soul of a city. As it is, Capital never stops feeling like a novel that has been produced by committee, workshop or focus group.
Max Dunbar reviews John Lanchester‘s Capital.
Maintenant: celebrating the avant garde
The Maintenant series continues to promote innovation in British and European poetry. Footage from the Maintenant: a celebration of avant garde poetry held on March 31st 11th 2012 at the Rich Mix centre in London. Performances from sound poets and sonic artists including Ben Morris & Fiona Kennedy & Jon Marshall, Hannah Silva & Holly Pester, Gabriele Labanauskaite, Tamarin Norwood & Patrick Coyle & Julia Calver, Marton Koppany, Mark Jackson, Ollie Evans & Lisa Jeschke & Lucy Beynon, David Berridge & Nick-e Melville.
Curated by SJ Fowler.